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If Obama Wants Kids On Stage, Let's Give Him Kids On Stage

Today, Obama is once again going to ignore the Constitution. This time, the Constitutional right under attack is gun control. According to White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, Obama will be presenting a “concrete package” of proposals which will water down the Constitutional rights of American citizens. What makes this more despicable than the average Obama overstep is the fact that when he presents this proposal, he will be surrounded by children. Maybe it’s time for conservative leaders to do the same...with an issue that actually applies to every American child.

Each American’s share of the national debt is $52,204. That means that every man, woman, and child who is a citizen of the United States is automatically saddled with debt. Meanwhile, we have no budget (1,358 days and counting), no plan, and spending is out of control. I propose that conservatives call for spending cuts on a stage filled with children. Each of these children could be holding a sign proclaiming this number or what that would mean to them. For example, “My debt could have paid for a college education." Perhaps that message would resonate.

Every child in America is saddled with this debt and, with our government spending at a rate of $3.6 billion dollars every day, this debt is growing. While Obama is trotting out children as props to evoke an emotional reaction, an issue that is truly the problem facing children is seen as an unemotional issue. How can future generations succeed when the government doesn’t seem to be able to stop spending? That is the problem harming America’s children. It is immoral to rob our children of the opportunities that lie ahead simply because politicians refuse to make tough choices today. Let’s put it out there for everyone to see.

Yesterday's proposed rules on school accountability are yet another reminder that it’s time for federal bureaucrats at the Department of Education to get their hands out of our education system. In its latest power-grab, the department seeks to enact top-down measures that would remove authority from the hands of teachers, school districts, and state government. The regulation would impose Education Department-mandated accountability measures promulgating federal government oversight over student and school achievement.

Puerto Rico is in a financial free-fall, and the federal government is actively trying to prevent a total economic meltdown. Recently, legislation was introduced in the House by the Natural Resources Committee to help resolve Puerto Rico’s financial crisis, an effort that is well-intentioned and far superior to any taxpayer bailout of the territory. There are concerns, however, that still need to be addressed before the bill should go forward.

Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) does not believe the United States' $19.2 trillion national debt is a national security threat. He made the comments during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the strategic implications of the national debt on Wednesday, chaired by Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.)

Recently, the public debt crisis in Puerto Rico has sparked widespread discussion about the need for public pension reform. The island territory is already $72 billion in debt, with shortfalls in the public pension fund of up to $30 billion. Without major changes in government spending patterns, Puerto Rico is in danger of becoming insolvent, sending the already brittle economy into a death spiral. While many on the left call for the immediate restructuring of Puerto Rico’s debt, the island’s plight is just the latest example of a state or territory misusing and abusing their public pension system, demonstrating the dire need for reform.

It’s quite telling that the cover of the federal budget for the 2017 fiscal year portrays snow-capped mountains, because the proposals read like a liberal wish list being sent to Santa’s workshop. Despite the absurd recommendations by President Obama, however, the enactment of such policies would have devastating consequences for years to come.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released its updated budget projections, and there's no sugar-coating the numbers. The federal government’s annual budget deficits were already slated to start rising again in 2016, but thanks to some discouraging economic growth predictions and a bloated budget deal that added tens of billions in new spending, we’re now looking at returning to trillion dollar annual deficits in only six years (2022).

Treasury Secretary Jack Lew is reporting that Congress only have until November 5th before the federal government hits its borrowing limit, an earlier date than most analysts were predicting. This can be expected to prompt the perennial debate about the nation’s debt and what, if anything, can be done about it.

In his FY 2016 budget, President Barack Obama proposed $1.44 trillion in new taxes over the next ten years. Though his tax proposal is not likely to be passed by Congress, it comes on top of hikes he already managed to enact, such as the fiscal cliff deal that increased taxes by $620 billion and the $1 trillion of taxes in ObamaCare. Conservative activists, rightly, slammed the tax hikes, which have contributed to a slow economic recovery in the aftermath of the Great Recession.

The volatility in the stock market in recent days offers a clue to the dangerous power of the Federal Reserve, and further underscores the need to get government spending under control and finally start tackling the national debt.